The Daily Tentacle

Shrubbery

2010-02-14T23:40:00.001-08:00

Shrubbery, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

I've been arting

Call Me!

2010-02-12T08:59:00.001-08:00

Call Me!, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

Cast your lines deep

2010-02-11T08:05:00.001-08:00

Cast your lines deep, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

The Illuminatoid

2010-02-05T00:00:00.001-08:00

The Illuminatoid, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

Though his true name is unpronounceable by human tongues, you can call him Bob.

Infovore: color

2010-02-02T07:32:00.001-08:00

Infovore: color, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

Infovore

2010-02-02T07:28:00.001-08:00

Infovore, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

Tricksters Burden

2010-01-22T10:22:00.001-08:00

Tricksters Burden, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

My art has been getting better

OctoLove

2009-08-13T09:44:00.001-07:00

OctoLove, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

I've started working with acrylics

cthulhubuddha

2009-02-12T10:27:00.001-08:00

cthulhubuddha, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

It is said that the path to enlightenment resides in his giant green translucent belly.

The Coq of Cthulhu

2009-02-12T10:25:00.001-08:00

The Coq of Cthulhu, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

Have you ever noticed how completely alien roosters are? The fleshy wattle, the eyes a window to barely comprehensible avian insanity, waiting until the stars are right to fly between the worlds...

The Stars Are Right

2009-02-12T10:24:00.001-08:00

The Stars Are Right, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

Seeing the GOP foundering helplessly without solid leadership, I have a suggestion of someone that might truly represent the core values of the Republican party.

Cthulhu wants you

2009-02-12T10:22:00.001-08:00

Cthulhu wants you, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

Original art done before the election.

Mr Cuddles

2009-02-12T10:21:00.001-08:00

Mr Cuddles, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

On July 19th, 2008, we added a new member to our family!
This is Madeleine, and here cuteness is beyond measure.

OBEY

2008-03-18T00:32:00.001-07:00

OBEY, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

CTHULHU.COM has gone live.

Wish You Were Here

2008-02-05T00:30:00.001-08:00

CthulhuPostcard2, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

I like my new drawing tablet.

Clever devices

2007-03-12T19:51:00.001-07:00

Clever devices, originally uploaded by xtopher42.

Hint: the first image is supposed to be a hand dropping an object, not a helicopter. I know it's somewhat confusing.

Colossal Squid!

2007-02-22T16:30:00.001-08:00

New Zeland Fishermen have caught an intact colossal squid estimated at 33 feet long and about 990 lbs!!! It's currently frozen in the hull of their ship, being transported to New Zeland for scientific examination.

[BBC article link] [Article on 2.5 m. specimen caught in 2003]

Amazing.

Table of Malcontents

2007-02-17T11:02:00.001-08:00

Table of Malcontents does exactly what I wanted to do with this blog and with The Shiny List, professionally, and every day. I have yet to find a better pack of meat-filters for the internet, and they seem to nail every one of my bizarre fringe interests, from cephalopods to steampunk. So if I haven't updated in weeks, go visit them for something intersting.

Stick-figure dancing toy

2007-01-26T20:21:00.000-08:00

Happy Cephalopodmas!

2007-01-12T00:25:00.000-08:00

Happy Cephalopodmas!
Originally uploaded by xtopher42.

I'm a bad blogger. This was supposed to go out last month.

Backlog of Tentacle Goodness!

2007-01-05T12:29:00.000-08:00

I'm considering re-naming this the bi-annual tentacle to reflect my posting habits. :(
Though long neglected, I have not forgotten about this blog... so here's the backlog of tentacle related news!:

First, the toys: LEGOs!

The Lego AquaRaiders line has a playset with an awesome giant squid.

Also,

My Little Cthulhu to Arrive in 2007

8" Vinyl toys from Dreamland Toy Works coming in February or March. WANT.

Ok, more later, I PROMISE this time.

WHAT?
DON'T LOOK AT ME LIKE THAT.
-chris

Back from the dead

2006-10-20T13:35:00.000-07:00

Adjusting to a new work schedule has pretty much killed the list for the moment, but hopefully this should change soon.
In the meantime, I've been busy with the art, and have put a few things up on Flickr.:

-Chris

JoCo Second Life concert

2006-09-14T20:50:00.000-07:00

JoCo Second Life concert
Originally uploaded by xtopher42.

Great concert in Second Life by Jonathan Coulton.
With Giant squid.

Sport Fishermen snag giant squid tentacles

2006-08-29T16:23:00.000-07:00

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - A tentacle and two arms of a giant squid about 20 feet long were snagged by a sport fisherman off Santa Cruz Island.

(found via)

Art: Robo-Octopus

2006-08-29T15:36:00.000-07:00

Found this today via the myconfinedspaces blog, which is worth look in its own right:

Munchkin Cthulhu

2006-08-20T10:28:00.000-07:00

Something else to add to my wishlist..
Coming In November from Steve Jackson Games
Munchkin Cthulhu

yay!

Sunday Supplemental: 1000 Tentacles

2006-08-06T08:55:00.000-07:00

Leong Wan Kok and pH Khor's website is called 1000 Tentacles. Can you really ask for much more?

Supplemental

Screw-On-Head, Brass Goggles blog

2006-07-31T23:21:00.000-07:00

Sci-Fi.com has an animated pilot The Amazing Screw-On Head available for viewing online. Looks very steampunk, very cool. It's based off the comic of the same name by Mike Mignola, creator of Hellboy. I actually picked up a copy of it a while back and found it thoroughly enjoyable. From the website:

In this hilarious send-up of Lovecraftian horror and steampunk adventure, President Abraham Lincoln's top spy is a bodyless head known only as Screw-On Head.

When arch-fiend Emperor Zombie steals an artifact that will enable him to threaten all life on Earth, the task of stopping him is assigned to Screw-on Head. Fortunately, Screw-On Head is not alone on this perilous quest. He is aided by his multitalented manservant, Mr. Groin, and by his talking canine cohort, Mr. Dog.

Of course, viewing the video requires the latest version of Flash.

This was found via the delightful steampunk blog, Brass Goggles, which is definitely worth a look. Of recent interest: Steampunk Transformers, and The Steampunk Lego Flikr Pool

Re: Links: 7.20.06: science!

2006-07-31T16:45:00.000-07:00

Pharyngula pointed out this little comic:

From http://www.thepaincomics.com/

Modern Squid

2006-07-21T08:23:00.000-07:00

You know what happens when I do a search for Squid on flickr?

I find this:

This woman made a giant plush squid. Giant.

More here: http://www.modernsquid.com/

Inspiration

2006-07-20T09:45:00.000-07:00

Another inspirational poster

Inspirational posters

2006-07-20T09:24:00.000-07:00

I found a large repository of inspirational gaming posters:

Scaffolding art

2006-07-20T08:48:00.000-07:00

Nelson's Column in London was being rennovated recently. I love the art on the scaffolding!

[Click for larger image.]

Jason Hakenwerth, Balloon Animals from Beyond the Stars

2006-06-30T06:53:00.000-07:00

Jason Hackenwerth does strange and unnatural things with balloons:

His work can be found here:

Site Project, The Proposition, Little John Contemporary, Savannah College

I need to contact this artist about my ideas for a theatre adaptation of Urotsukidoji , Legend of the Overfiend, The Musical, as this is finally someone who would ge the costumes right...

remote controlled squid!

2006-06-27T06:19:00.000-07:00

http://www.gocomics.com/foxtrot/

Miracles

2006-06-19T07:26:00.000-07:00

From the artist John Fontacuberta

Miracles & Co.

The Miracle of Cephalodization

Silly quiz

2006-06-13T09:35:00.000-07:00

Which Great Old One are You?

New Zeland cephalopods

2006-06-12T12:50:00.000-07:00

http://www.teara.govt.nz/ is the new electronic encyclopedia for New Zeland... and it's got a great section on native cephalopods here: Octopus and squid

According to legend, the Polynesian navigator Kupe was led to New Zealand by the giant octopus Te Wheke-o-Muturangi. Intent on killing the octopus that was robbing his tribe of fish, Kupe, along with his family and some warriors, set out in a large canoe to hunt it down. The octopus swam south for weeks and eventually took shelter near Cook Strait, where Kupe found it. After a ferocious battle, Kupe tricked the octopus into wrapping its arms around some water containers, and killed it with a blow to the head.
Māori caught octopus by hand. They placed one hand into the water to act as bait and when an octopus wrapped its tentacles around their arm, they seized the body with their other hand and hauled the animal out of the water.

First Contact

2006-06-12T08:51:00.000-07:00

I put up a new watercolor in flickr that I'm fairly happy with. Full set of my stuff here.

Cephalo-blogs

2006-06-11T12:44:00.000-07:00

A new squidblog that I found:

Giant Squid

Jonathan Coulton

2006-06-08T14:59:00.000-07:00

Late day instructions:

Click this link, listen to this song.

skullcrusher moutain

Welcome to my secret lair on Skullcrusher Mountain
I hope that you've enjoyed your stay so far
I see you've met my assistant Scarface
His appearance is quite disturbing
But I assure you he's harmless enough
He's a sweetheart, calls me master
And he has a way of finding pretty things and bringing them to me

I'm so into you
But I'm way too smart for you
Even my henchmen think I'm crazy
I'm not surprised that you agree
If you could find some way to be
A little bit less afraid of me
You'd see the voices that control me from inside my head
Say I shouldn't kill you yet

The artist's site is here:

http://www.jonathancoulton.com/

He also has lovesong about a giant squid,

I Crush Everything

NemoMatic!!

2006-06-08T08:21:00.000-07:00

omg.. I think I wet myself a little...

http://www.nemomatic.com/

San Francisco Bay Area artist Nemo Gould has created a fantastic giant squid kinetic sculpture. Here's a video of the giant squid in action.

(via http://squid.us/)

Knit nautaloids!

2006-06-02T11:37:00.000-07:00

Patterns for knit nautiloids:

Pharyngula

2006-06-01T08:14:00.000-07:00

Pharyngula has a lovely little roundup of cephalopod links:

Cephalopod madness

Poulpe Pulps!

2006-05-25T11:27:00.000-07:00

Tentacle jackpot! (via BoingBoing)

Poulpe Pulps: Here you will find hard-to-locate images of science fiction, fantasy, and adventure pulp and comic covers featuring the wily octopus.

OBEY

2006-05-25T08:32:00.000-07:00

OBEY
Originally uploaded by xtopher42.

Lord Cthulhu commanded me to paint.

Meomi

2006-05-23T10:08:00.000-07:00

Meomi has some of the most painfully cute stuff ever.

The above images are from calendars they made from 2002-2004

Oh no.. they have buttons too..

...and baby-t shirts..

Squidhat

2006-05-18T06:41:00.000-07:00

Felted squid hat! You can make it with this pattern. Link. ( via)

Sucker

2006-05-17T11:19:00.000-07:00

Pharyngula: How octopus suckers work
PZ Myers has a nifty article on octopus suckers.

Squidsoap

2006-05-16T09:43:00.000-07:00

Squidsoap!

The dispenser has a small ink marker on the pump that leaves a dot on the hand when pressed. Scrub your hands until the ink washes off to assure that your hands are clean. Wash for less than the recommended 15 to 20 seconds, and the mark will not disappear.

Via Squidblog

Cthulhu in Sepia

2006-05-16T09:22:00.000-07:00

I uploaded some of the watercolors I've been working on lately.

Octo-Lass!

2006-05-10T06:47:00.000-07:00

via Pharyngula

http://www.toseeinthedark.it/En/index.htm

Oddica

2006-05-08T12:13:00.000-07:00

Oddica.com has some great t-shirts.

Of course, this one's my favorite:

via WarrenEllis

Robot Tentacles!!!!

2006-05-08T09:25:00.000-07:00

I think I've waited all my life for robotic tentacles. Moohoohahaha.

Robotic "tentacles" that can grasp and grapple with a wide variety of objects have been developed by US researchers.

...

The tentacle-like manipulators, known as "Octarms", resemble an octopus's limb or an elephant's trunk. They were developed through a project called OCTOR (sOft robotiC manipulaTORs), which involves several US universities and is funded by the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

Each Octarm is powered by compressed air and has surface pressure sensors, positional sensors and a camera mounted at its tip. This allows the limb to nimbly investigate pipes, tunnels and other narrow spaces.

There's also a range of videos showing it's various uses. All SFW. ogod. why did I need to include that...

Big thanks to Steven at Ego Likeness for sending the link... who's in the process of putting together an nifty looking compilation CD "Where's Neil When You Need Him?" of music inspired by Niel Gaiman... which, I noticed, has songs by Raputina and Voltaire, as well as other notables.

Damn

2006-05-03T09:16:00.000-07:00

Scars from giant squid found on sperm whale carcass

"A myriad of circular scars are located all across the whale's snout, visual proof of its predation on unwilling Architeuthis and most of the scars are 2.5-3cm in diameter, suggesting this animal preyed upon squid weighing 200-300kg."

That's a lot of pissed off cephalopod.

Knithulhu

2006-05-01T08:44:00.000-07:00

Knithulhu sneaking by the sink...
Originally uploaded by The Burning Red.

Occasionally searching the flickr tags for "Cthulhu" turns up fascinating results.

I want one of these.

Larry Knox

2006-05-01T08:38:00.000-07:00

Larry Knox was hired to do the cover of a reprinting of War of The Worlds, for which he used a squid conveniently bought at a local chinese market as a prop. The results are creepy and amazing:

(via via)

Light Switch Cover

2006-04-30T09:26:00.000-07:00

Cute giant squid lightswitch cover from cafe press!

Cthulhu Mask

2006-04-30T06:07:00.000-07:00

Bob Bassett, a russian artist and leatherworker has produced a nifty cthulhu mask.

Some of is other stuff is pretty incredible too, such as:

Bug Backpack

Dragon Backpack

-A big thanks to NorwoodMatt for the links!

Fhtagn-Dazs

2006-04-28T08:51:00.000-07:00

fhtagn-dazs
Originally uploaded by xtopher42.

Found randomly, and I've been unable to find the originator of this delightful new ice-cream.

My google-fu is weak today.

Baby Pirate Cabana Street Fight 2006!!

2006-04-25T05:13:00.000-07:00

You have an assignment today:

You will all find a broadband connection capable of downloading this 100mb movie file, and you will watch it. Trust me. It's worth it.

Paul Robertson is the demented mutant responsible for this short animation piece about a video game that never existed, but should have.

Viewing is mandatory. Cephalopods (and zombie cephalopods) feature heavily.

Originally found here

Friday Cephalopod

2006-04-24T05:23:00.000-07:00

from : http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/

Friday Cephalopod: Striped Pyjama Squid

Sepioloidea lineolata

More Tentacle Kids

2006-04-21T08:52:00.000-07:00

Our Child To Be
Originally uploaded by douglasamcintosh.

Rember, we love the Great Old Ones, we don't love the Great Old Ones.

Or else this is what happens.
Aww, but just look at its little suckers!

Geologic Cookbook

2006-04-19T11:23:00.000-07:00

I know what we're making for Cephalopodmas next year:

Ammonites in a blanket!

Geologic and Paleontologic Cook Book: How to make edible goodies for teaching and fun!

There are also trilobite cookies that look awesome too.

Found via the Cephalopodcast Blog

Kraken Girl

2006-04-19T06:13:00.000-07:00

Kraken Girl
Originally uploaded by Grabthar.

Created for a fark.com photoshop contest

Infinite freedom of motion

2006-04-18T11:02:00.000-07:00

Octopuses have trick elbows

Researchers recorded muscle activity in octopus limbs, and found that an arm generates two waves of muscle contractions that propagate toward each other. When the waves collide, they form a part-time joint.

Octo-brooch

2006-04-17T06:41:00.000-07:00

This site has some amazing jewelry.

Train them young

2006-04-15T11:35:00.000-07:00

Sophie as a squid
Originally uploaded by Freefaller.

Oh emm gee.

Giant Sea Anemone

2006-04-13T12:37:00.000-07:00

From Deep Sea News

Giant Sea Anemone

An enormous sea anemone from 2500m depth on the East Pacific Rise is reported this month in the journal Marine Biology. The monstrous actiniarian Boloceroides daphneae is abundant on boulders, cliffs, and rocky outcrops near hydrothermal vent sites but not on them, writes author Marymegan Daly from Ohio State University. The largest living specimen she found had a column diameter of 1m, a tentacle crown of 2m diameter, and tentacles trailing an estimated 3m and more. That's just downright dangerous. B. daphneae's closest living relative is the comparatively diminuitive Cerianthid anemone found in warmer coastal waters.

The new species has been known since 1990, but it was tough to collect, and it provides a good example of commonly encountered but largely unstudied species in the deep sea environment. According to Daly, the eggs of B. daphneae are yolky, and should therefore be long lived. Theoretically, they should also be capable of fairly broad dispersal on deep ocean currents, maybe even caught in a hydrothermal updraft to be cast even more widely. This would account for their broad distribution. Ten or more giant anemones can be seen in a 'typical' eight hour dive.

Here is a link to more .

Who's laughing now?

2006-04-11T15:22:00.000-07:00

Who's laughing now?
Originally uploaded by xtopher42.

More of my watercolors. Not bad for my second attempt.

He'll be comin' round the mountain

2006-04-11T15:20:00.000-07:00

He'll be comin' round the mountain - tweaked
Originally uploaded by xtopher42.

I've been dabbling in watercolors. Bad things have happened.

scaredofbees.com

2006-04-10T07:07:00.000-07:00

http://www.scaredofbees.com/

squidblogs!

2006-04-07T12:49:00.000-07:00

Yay! More squidblogs!!

This one is new to me:

http://www.squidblog.com/

and if you missed it the first time:

http://squid.us

Cephalapod Friday:

2006-04-07T11:29:00.000-07:00

from Pharyngula, our favorite science blogger:

http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/

Friday Cephalopod: Japanese Pancake Devilfish

Opisthoteuthis depressa

Figure from Cephalopods: A World Guide ^{( amzn/ b&n/ abe/pwll )}, by Mark Norman.

If you look at it upside down, it's like it's sticking its tounge out at you.

Sleepytime Cthulhu

2006-04-07T10:52:00.000-07:00

Found randomly on the net:

Sleepytime Cthulhu

Steve Dismukes

http://www.geocities.com/majic13.geo/about.html

Fishnipples, part 2

2006-04-07T07:19:00.000-07:00

Ray Troll of Trollart has published some neat renderings of Tiktaalik, the missing link between water creatures and land animals:

http://www.trollart.com/

Friday is Nipples on a Fish Woman Day!

2006-04-07T06:16:00.000-07:00

Cthulhugrrl wrote:

This is from the Wired Game Blog, and it amused me:

Topless in Oblivion: The Video
Topic: PC Gaming
Most sites just talked about the mod for Oblivion that renders the female characters topless. GameVideos went out and did something about it, damn it.

Click here (mild adult content, sort of, really it's just a few polygonal nipples) to experience the effects of the mod for yourself. Really, it's, uh... vaguely disturbing. Moreso than it is erotic. Unless you're really into checking out the nipples on a fish woman. Or enjoy seeing a half-naked woman rampage through a city beating people with what seems to be a wooden club.

So actually it's probably very erotic for some people.

http://wiredblogs.tripod.com/games/index.blog?entry_id=1453177

Chris: Everyone knows that nipples + fishwomen = crazy delicious!

Chris Perridas: H. P. Lovecraft & His Legacy: February 1933 - Mythos Dynamite

2006-04-04T10:39:00.000-07:00

Chris Perridas: H. P. Lovecraft & His Legacy "A presentation of H. P. Lovecraft, his contemporaries, and his historical significance. A 'blog of references, original mini-essays and Lovecraft's wide reaching influences."

-Excellent blog of Lovecraft's writings and atmospheric pictures for the time period.

Bobtail squid

2006-04-04T10:21:00.000-07:00

Cthulhugrrl wrote:
So, while full sized adult bobtail squid are adorable, actual baby bobtail squid are far from it...

Research Dump: For later organization

2006-04-04T10:15:00.000-07:00

This morning's research for the Tentacle:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R'lyeh

According to lovecraft, it's supposed to be here: 47° 9' S, 126° 43' W Google maps link to that location

-What is a shuggoth?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoggoth

http://bradhicks.livejournal.com/103629.html

-related:

http://www.cthulhulives.org/shoggoth/

There are some things that man was not meant to adapt to musical theatre, and A Shoggoth on the Roof has long been regarded as a musical that cannot and must not be produced.

Extensive article on a fishing trip for humbolt squid... tons, and tons of humbolt squid..

http://www.metroactive.com/papers/metro/03.29.06/squid-0613.html

Sanity Ablation: Dancing Karaoke Cthulhu

2006-04-04T10:10:00.000-07:00

Thats right, its a flash thingy that dances to mp3's, or your voice. The effect is really rather disturbing.

http://denning.net/cthulhu/

Myth-o's commercial

2006-04-03T17:18:00.000-07:00

Myth-O's!

Cthulhu Lives Silent film

2006-04-03T11:59:00.000-07:00

Trailer for the "Call of Cthulhu" Silent film, from Cthulhu Lives: H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society

It's $20 on DVD and looks amazing. We'll be picking this one up soon, I think.

In the notes on the DVD, there is strong evidence that these people are all stark raving mad:

"To appeal to Lovecraft fans throughout across the globe, this DVD provides intertitles in 24 languages including: Catalan, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Euskera, Finnish, French, Galician, German, Hungarian, Irish, Italian, Lithuanian, Luxmbourgish, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish and Welsh. These aren't just subtitles either — they are the real title cards rendered tastefully in each language. If you thought the story was scary before, wait until you see it in Welsh!"

How does "Ia! Ia! Cthulhu F'taghn!" translate in welsh, anyway?

Cuthulego

2006-04-03T11:39:00.000-07:00

Searching for the tag "Cthulhu" on YouTube produces some interesting results:

Bait

2006-04-03T11:23:00.000-07:00

Testing out YouTube embedable player:

This makes me cackle, every single time.

Ia! Ia! Cthulhu F'taghn!

2006-04-03T06:24:00.000-07:00

BIAK04_11_05-0099.jpg
Originally uploaded by MattKK.

Welcome to the Daily Tentacle, where we're devote do bringing you all the news that's fit to ablate the sad lingering shreds of your sanity!

But for now, look at the cute little squid! Awww! He looks surly.